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FRAGILE Senator Mitch McConnell has been seen in a wheelchair and wearing a boot after suffering multiple falls last week as calls for his retirement heat up.
Eager Republican lawmakers are hungry to replace McConnell, 82, after he was physically carried into a car, even though he hasn’t admitted to stepping down.
On Monday night, the Kentucky representative looked shaky as he was wheeled out of a vote in Washington DC, video captured by CNN reveals.
He appears to still be recovering from a fall in the Capitol on Wednesday, where he plunged down a small flight of stairs.
At the time, aging McConnell slammed into the ground and caused a flock of senators to rush over and help, but his office said that he was “fine.”
His spokesperson told The U.S. Sun that McConnell’s bout with polio in 1944, when he was two, had caused some lifelong issues.
“The lingering effects of polio in his left leg will not disrupt his regular schedule of work,” they said in a statement.
McConnell’s aging has long been an issue throughout Congress, but the longtime lawmaker has always shrugged off concerns and kept working.
He’s been a powerful member of the highest chamber for decades and was known as one of the biggest DC players when he served as Senate minority leader.
In November, he stepped down from that position but has maintained he will serve out his Senate term through 2027.
As concern for McConnell’s condition mounts, at least one lawmaker is already eyeing his enviable position, according to a bombshell report.
Kentucky Representative Andy Barr was chatting at a Republican event about running in the 2026 Senate race for the vacant seat, attendees told CBS News.
Barr has previously said in private that he won’t challenge McConnell if the senior representative chooses to run for another term.
But if he decides to retire, the up-and-coming lawmaker could be in a prime position to take over.
Barr, 51, has been serving as a representative for Kentucky’s 6th congressional district since 2013, and he’s considered a top pick for a Senate office, a GOP source told CBS News.
Over the weekend, he reportedly hung out in Palm Beach, Florida, with major donors like former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and head of trading company Susquehanna International Group, Jeff Yass.
The group gathered with other senators just down the road from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate to discuss how they could fill McConnell’s position, and Barr reportedly came out on top.
Other names that were considered for the position were Dan Cameron, who is a former Kentucky attorney general and close friend of McConnell, and businessman Nate Morris.